


I Think Our Boss is a Supervillain

by MistyF



Category: Fire Emblem: Fuukasetsugetsu | Fire Emblem: Three Houses
Genre: ...sort of, AFAB Non-Binary Byleth, Altered Mental States, Alternate Universe - Like Today Except..., Alternate Universe - Magical Girls, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, F/F, Femslash, First Time, Minor Caspar von Bergliez/Linhardt von Hevring, Minor Ferdinand von Aegir/Hubert von Vestra, Multi, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Roommates to lovers, Sexual Content, Speculative fiction, Spoilers for Post-Timeskip | War Phase (Fire Emblem: Three Houses), Time Travel, Workplace Relationship, first fic in a while, magic masked as technology, references to past abuse, theoretically a slow burn, this fic fights capitalism, usually writes original work, why can I not write simple things?
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-09-29
Updated: 2019-10-12
Packaged: 2020-11-01 09:10:41
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 10,568
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20812637
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MistyF/pseuds/MistyF
Summary: Decades ago, refugees fleeing from a cataclysm in their world arrived in ours and established a new home for themselves, Zanado. Then, only a few years later, them and their settlement vanished without a trace.That, however, is not the end of the story, but the beginning.Today, Seiros.com is an organization whose presence is felt throughout the internet. Between the social media platform which launched the brand and their cloud-hosted services, over 60% of all websites are running at least one Seiros-based component. Meanwhile, Slither Technologies Ltd., which created the near omnipresent search engine Slither, is on the cusp of a major breakthrough. Recently, they previewed project KAIJU, a biological weapon which is set to revolutionize the way wars are fought.Edelgard, who is the niece of Slither Technologies Ltd. CTO, Thales Volkhard and a platform developer at Serios Web Services, knows first hand that there is more going on than people know about. She knows that both projects have side effects which are killing people in ways that defy explination. She just needs to find the evidence to back up her claims without getting caught.





	1. A Selfish Morning

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After an eventful night, Edelgard and Dorothea are both surprised and pleased to be waking up in bed together.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I updated this a bit when I realized I missed something important. The overall plot is unchanged, it just got an additional level of angst.  
I soft switch POVs in this and pet names are the main signifier. Edie is, of course, Edelgard, and Thea is Dorothea.

It was seconds before seven-thirty on a crisp autumn morning and, in a certain fifth-floor apartment in SoHo, a phone on a bedside table blinked to life as seven-thirty approached. The seconds ticked by, unnoticed by the two women wrapped up together in a super plush fleece blanket. That is until twenty-nine transformed into thirty and a song began to play.

Although quiet at first, the music swelled into a dark, but fast-paced techno banger with the gravitas of a gothic aria. When Edelgard had picked it as her new alarm, Hubert and Ferdinand’s latest single had been catchy and served to chase away the night’s shadows.

Now though? It was just loud, and she hated it, the melody’s growing strength making her groan into what her half-awake brain registered as not the curve of her elbow but the hollow of someone else's throat. What… what was she doing in bed with someone else? No, more like, why was someone else in _her_ bed? 

Dorothea stirred at the sudden noise, and tried to figure out why Edie’s alarm was louder than usual. It was not coming from down the hallway, but close by instead. As her awareness sharpened, she realized her chin was resting against the top of someone else’s head. Her arm was around someone’s shoulder. Who? Oh, right, she _had_ slept with—"Edie, just why is your alarm is going off before nine? It's a _Saturday_."

"We have things to do," Edelgard replied, her brain on auto-pilot while she tried to remember why she and Thea were in bed together. The events of last night were sort of hazy at the moment, and she blamed it on the overwhelming exertion of what they had set out to do. That, and how distracting it was to be wrapped up in the fragrance of Thea’s apple-scented body wash just as much as the blanket.

"Then again...” she added, trailing off as she weighed her responsibilities and considered hitting snooze. There was so very much to do, and not enough time to do it, but she was also so... _comfortable_ with Thea’s arms around her. It was an unfamiliar feeling that she wanted—_craved_—more of. 

Not that she would ever admit to such things out loud. Matter of fact, the only reason she had even let this happen was because, well, it happened so suddenly. One moment, she was helping her roommate into their apartment. The next, they were pressed together in bed, their lips locked, their hands on each other. How long had it been since she even considered wanting another’s touch?

_Augh_. What to do? What to do? The song had been playing for a few seconds now. Something had to be done about it. Just like something had to be done about the inevitable change in their dynamic after this. Like the feedback from a microphone, each thing only exacerbated the other. In the end, it came down to one question; did she get up and face that reality or keep laying here and let the moment exist without judgement? 

Everyone was always telling her to be selfish once in a while, to stop putting work ahead of herself. If they thought that just seeing her in the office, well, they didn’t even know the half of it. Not one of them knew how much effort it was for her just exist. 

Based on pride alone, she was tempted to ignore the advice like she always did. However, she also was tempted to heed that chorus of suggestions. Considering what had happened yesterday, what the two of them had faced together, this victorious morning seemed as good a time as any to be a little selfish.

Decided, Edelgard snaked an arm out of their embrace and suppressed a gasp. It had been so lovely lately that they had left the windows open. It also meant that reaching for her phone was like reaching into a freezer compared to the shared heat beneath the covers. Undeterred, she stretched over Thea's shoulder towards the table. She slapped the front of the singing device in hopes of hitting the part of the screen which served as a snooze button. After the second attempt, the song died. Drinking in the ensuing silence like a perfect cup of tea, Edelgard wished the tiny moment of peace could last forever.

Already adjusted to the idea of having slept with her roommate, Dorothea was disarmed more by that fact that Edie had hit snooze on her alarm. She never did that. In fact, Dorothea was so surprised that she missed an opportunity to peck Edie's collarbone with a kiss.

“I thought we had things to do…” she teased with what came out as sultry half-whisper.

“We do,” Edelgard replied, pulling her arm under the covers again and tucking it back between them. “However, they can… they can wait for just a little bit."

"Then why even _be_ up early on a Saturday, hmm?" Dorothea continued to tease. It was not like she was actually all _that_ upset about being up already, but she always pounced on an opportunity to fluster Edie. Those moments of her being off-balance were the only time Dorothea could get a glimpse behind the stoic front her roommate presented to the world. Confident as she appeared to be at work and in social situations, Dorothea knew these kinds of intimate moments were unfamiliar to Edie. 

She, however, lived for this tension, this tightness in her chest. She loved the feeling of that one long breath in before stepping out into thin air and hoping the other person was interested in catching you.

"Is it because you didn’t get enough of me last night?" she purred, her lips brushing Edie’s forehead as she leaned into the position in which they found themselves.

Until that exact moment, it had not occurred to Edelgard how this series of actions would look. Even putting aside the uncharacteristic decision to snooze her alarm, getting up early was just the most pragmatic thing to do when they had a full day ahead of them. That said, with the situation as it was, concluding that her decisions meant something deeper was not unreasonable. Thea would no doubt read this whole series of events as a seductive sneak attack. 

"No, that’s not—” Trying to explain, Edelgard glanced down, her face taking on a pink tinge that accompanied a spike of heat which only got worse when the heavy curve of Thea’s cleavage captured her gaze, forcing her train of thought to grind to a halt. That Thea was busty was no surprise to Edelgard—her roommate had never made an effort to downplay her size in the slightest—but this level of intimacy was changing her relationship to Thea and her body. Her lips had been there, drinking in the heat.

“Not what?” Dorothea said, capitalizing on Edie’s verbal stumble. “Not the case? You’re saying you’re totally satisfied after last night?”

“No, I wanted—” _Fuck_. Why was Thea so good at getting inside her head? How could she just… reach into the long-sealed well of her emotions like it was no big deal? Edelgard had always felt a little off-balance around Thea, ever since they moved in together a couple of summers ago, but it had gotten much worse lately. Was giving herself permission to be vulnerable around Thea the cause? Was the innocuous albeit difficult decision to wear a t-shirt around the apartment once in a while just the start of a chain reaction that had led to this moment of unplanned intimacy? 

If this was what it felt like to trust someone with who you really were, she never wanted to trust anyone else like this again.

“Oh? So you _did_ want more, then?” 

Edelgard’s breath caught as Thea squirmed even closer, pressing her slender frame into the soft, stretchy cotton of a camisole and shorts that struggled to constrain more than enough curves for the both of them. The irony that someone so soft would be her weakness was not lost on Edelgard. In a way, though, it made sense. A foil’s slender, flexible blade was well suited to finding gaps in the armor of one’s foe, and Thea had a rapier’s wit.

“Well, yes, but—_Rgh!_ That’s not the point!” Edelgard managed to reply, her tone infused with only a hint of the exasperation she felt. In an attempt to regain control of the situation, she rolled over so that her back was to Thea. A lock of long silver hair fell into her eyes as she did so. The wisp must have escaped from the bun she used to keep her hip-length hair from choking her during the night.

She took a deep breath in and then puffed at her hair before trying to continue in an even tone. “We're getting up now because we’re meeting Lyssa for breakfast this morning. There are things we need to figure out about our next mission."

"Oh, right. Totally forgot." 

Edelgard turned back to Thea. “You’re impossible—you know that?”

“I know,” she replied. Now that she had gotten Edie to engage, Dorothea passed the back of her hand over her friend’s cheek. “Look, Edie, if you’re—”

“No,” Edelgard replied, a bit harder than she meant to. She tried again, mirroring Thea’s gesture of affection. “No, I’m… I’m okay with this. With you being this close. I make no promises that an hour from now I won’t be utterly mortified or buried in regret, but—”

Just then, her phone started going off again.

"_Rgh!_; Shut up! _Shut up_, you infernal hunk of junk!"

Edelgard tried to replicate her feat from earlier but had no such luck a second time. Instead of quieting her alarm for another five minutes, she ended up pushing the still clamoring noise box off the table entirely. The song grew louder, the space between her bed and the hardwood floor serving as an amplifier. She felt Thea try not to laugh.

With how the morning had gone so far, the ridiculous thought that maybe her alarm would turn off on its own crossed Edelgard’s mind. It had been begging for attention for a bit now, and she had already snoozed it once. Instead of complying with her wishes, the song grew louder as if to spite her. She swore through gritted teeth and pulled away from the warmth of Thea's body to emerge from the blanket.

Draping herself, cat-like, over Thea's hip on her stomach, Edelgard reached for the floor. Her fingertips brushed the rubber of her case, but she could not manage to pull the blasted device any closer. That same silvery lock fell into her face again. 

In all of this, that she was wearing far, far less clothing than normal never crossed her mind. For a moment that went unnoticed behind her irritation, Edelgard forgot about her scars and what they represented.

Still trying not to laugh, Dorothea shifted from laying on her side to sit up, affording Edie a couple more inches of reach. Resting her elbow on her thigh, she leaned forward into the heel of her hand. With a free finger, she traced the ridge of one among the many jagged scars on Edie’s back peeking out from beneath her top. A pang of empathy made her eyes water.

Dorothea measured how close they were by how much of her skin Edie left uncovered while at home. Beyond the front door, not an inch beyond her hands and face was ever visible. Edie wore long sleeves at any time of the year and pants or tights as well. The first time seeing Edie’s bare arms, and all the damage that had been inflicted upon them, made her feel like she was being entrusted with something sacred.

This though, this was another level altogether. Nothing about Edie felt guarded right now. Edie had told her the story, had shown her the results of the experiments. However, hearing about someone’s suffering and seeing someone’s suffering laid out in such an obvious way were two different things. Edie’s sheer will to live after all she had endured was beyond admirable. Were she shattered in the same way, Dorothea was not confident that she could put herself back together.

When the song came to an abrupt end, Dorothea wiped her eyes and also slipped out from under the covers. Trying to chase the sadness away, she laid on top of Edie’s slender body. Her hair, tousled by sex and sleep, slid past her shoulders to create an auburn curtain on either side of her face. She leaned down and brushed the back of Edie’s neck with her lips.

Edelgard’s mind went fuzzy as sensations from Thea’s body pressing down against her began to pour in. The soft touch of her lips. The heat of her skin even through her clothes. The intrusive scent of sweet apples which hung in the air around her.

While the night’s momentum might have swept them up and dropped them into bed together, this was different. She was in complete control of her faculties. She could stop this if she wanted to. She could close this part of herself off again. Instead, she moaned into the bed when Thea kissed her neck again.

Encouraged by the moan, Dorothea added a little nibble to the kiss this time as she slid down to Edie’s shoulder. The tang of salt seeped into her mouth, and the sense memories of last night washed over her. 

It had been an ambush of sorts. A man a few seats down on the subway had fallen asleep with his phone in his hand. Then, without warning, two of those creatures who looked like static given human form emerged from the screen. 

That was the first time she had used the magic inflicted upon her from when Edie tried to protect her. Edie could not have known the demonic beast would explode like it did. Could not have known the spray of shards would tear into her like they did.

Regardless, they were brilliant together and something about that triggered a shared need within them. They came back to their apartment making out as if their lives depended on kissing forever. They had pretty much fallen into Edie’s bed and started exploring each other with the same desperate need. After that, the next thing Dorothea could remember was just now, when Edie’s alarm went off.

“You were so good last night, love,” she whispered into Edie’s ear.

Even more flustered than when Thea flirted with her, Edelgard pushed off of the bed harder than she meant to. The move tilted the pair up and flipped them over so that she was on top. Oh! This… This was an opportunity. Not the sort to pass on one, Edelgard moved to straddle Thea’s midsection. Moving faster than her more-than-friend could react, she gripped a wrist in either hand. She could be in control from her.

"Oh no, you have me trapped," Dorothea teased as she played at struggling between Edie’s thighs. She had not expected this turn of events, nor had she expected to like it, but here she was. She had never felt this breathless before, not even during her first. "Whatever will I do down here?"

Edelgard had never considered what sort of people she found attractive before now, but looking down at Thea from this position was like a glimpsing some sort of primal fantasy for her. Thea’s top was a bit askew after switching positions, leaving her partially exposed. Her wild auburn hair was draped part of her face. Her eyes were wide, her lips parted.

“You will do _exactly_ what I tell you,” Edelgard growled even as a blush spread over her pale skin. “And you will give me _everything_ I ask for.”

“_Anything_ for you, my Empress,” Thea said, her tone both coy and sincere at the same time.

“Good. Then I think I shall start with... this. " Edelgard pressed her lips to Thea's, relishing how soft they were against her own. The simple, unflinching receptiveness in that moment of contact reminded her that there was still hope in this world. Despite the callouses on her heart, Thea's soul had not hardened in the slightest. It was an aspect of her character that Edelgard had trouble understanding. How could someone this soft, this caring, not get torn apart?

The kiss stretched on, lips sliding past and over each other with increasing eagerness. Dorothea pulled Edie's thin bottom lip between her teeth and flicked it with the tip of her tongue. The move garnered a hungry moan from her partner.

No doubt starving for more, Edie’s grip tightened on her wrists and sides with a strength that should have been beyond her lithe frame. Even after last night, after all she had been told, it was easy to forget Edie was something... else. Something more than human. Between her fears and dreams, her physical scars and the ones on her psyche, Edie seemed just as broken as anyone else. Just as vulnerable.

She had been anything but vulnerable last night.

Little more than a month had passed since the first time Dorothea saw bullets bounce off of Edie like the air around her was somehow made of steel. Things had only gotten more out of control in the meantime. Regardless, whatever Edie was, Dorothea had joined her. The same power pulsed between the Creststone shrapnel in her back. She could be just as strong as Edie.

Edelgard felt a thrill as Thea pushed back into her challenge. Defiant, despite her situation, Thea invaded Edelgard’s mouth with her tongue. Her first feint was with the smooth, simple ball of her piercing. Thea hummed as she slipped it along the backside of Edelgard’s upper lip. The wave of stimulation made her hips shift against Thea’s stomach.

Dorothea felt Edie’s grip ease and pressed her advantage by stroking the side of Edie’s tongue with her piercing. It only took a few seconds before Edie’s movements grew more insistent and her hands slipped past Dorothea’s wrists to grip the sheets instead. She brought her arms up around Edie’s neck and pulled her close before kissing her again.

Following suit, their bodies pressed together. Needy tongues circled each other as shared desire spiraled up like hawks riding thermals on a warm day. When they finally parted, both of them were breathless. Thea looked like she needed a moment, but Edie resumed the attack right away with a playful bite to her chin.

“Ah! Edie...” Dorothea began, but her words turned to moans as teeth brushed her neck and Edie slipped a hand under her top. The contact made the partial symbol of the shattered crest she now carried flare to life on the back of her hand. The same symbol showed, in near-perfect clarity, on the back of Edie’s hand, the lines glowing through the stretch cotton.

Content beyond words, Dorothea relaxed into Edie’s second attempt at sex. All things considered? She was doing great and got better as an hour came and went. Eventually, they ended up back under the blanket. Thea was laying on her back, Edelgard was laying on her shoulder. Her bun had come undone with everything that had happened and Thea was running her fingers through the strands.

“Edie,” she began, trying to phrase her words carefully. “I… I want to say thanks.”

“For the sex?” Edelgard said, trying to play at Thea’s teasing.

“Sort of? More than that. You trusted me—more than I’ve ever been trusted in my life, and… that means a lot to me.” 

“... you’re the first person I’ve trusted in years.” Edelgard admitted. She said it to Thea as much as she did herself. There was nothing else to say after that. Neither had expected the other’s sentiments, and they laid in quiet intimacy for a while before another alarm went off.

“Okay, _now_ we really have to get going..."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I realize I leaned on a "noodle event" a bit here, but I wanted to do this scene and hint at what was to come instead of opening with Dorothea's first magical girl battle or on some flashback to [Ch.2 Spoilers] or [Ch.3 Spoilers].
> 
> Next Time: "Meanwhile, Byleth."


	2. Dreams of Far-Off Memories

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Meanwhile, Byleth's morning goes in a very different direction.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I really hope I pulled this part off. A fair bit of the story is going to rely on this dynamic and if Sothis and Byleth's banter is not right, I feel like most people will check out after a few chapters. So... let me know, 'kay?

Byleth woke as light too bright to ignore played over their eyelids. When they did, a blaze of green flame burned before them, the light and heat shutting out everything else. Not that there _was _anything to shut out. As was always the case with these dreams, the strange fire was all that existed. 

It seemed that the void had claimed them once again. The emptiness of the space between spaces encroached from every direction. Even the unseen surface upon which they stood felt like it was rising beneath them. When they were young, the omnipresent pressure had been disturbing and disconcerting. Now, however, the endless dark’s embrace felt familiar, even welcoming. It felt kind of like home in a sense.

Applying that word to this infinite nothing felt like a paradox, the pyre was the only other thing here after all, but their mind said the word all the same—and with such certainty that it was hard to argue the point. They had spent a lifetime visiting this place where the only thing that changed was the size of the blaze as, with each year that passed, the flames’ height grew to match their own. 

In fact, considering how much Jeralt’s job had caused them to move them around, it was very likely that being here, in communion with the flames, was the only place Byleth had visited with any frequency. 

Familiar as the void was, there was still something odd about being here tonight. This was the first time the nothingness had consumed their awareness every night for a week. Before this, the longest streak had been three days, and that had come after pushing themselves to the point of exhaustion during the week of their thesis defense.

Why was this happening? What was causing it? What sort of effect was it having on their heath? The questions swirled around them, wolves stalking in the shadows. Then something even more odd happened.

“Have you come to visit me again, Ghost of Futures Yet to Come?” asked a melodic voice that carried hints of Germanic accenting.

Byleth turned from flames, now a mundane fire burning in a stone hearth, to face the person who was addressing them. Traveling like this was new, last night had been the first time. They still had no idea where—_ or when _—they were now. There had not been much time to ask questions last night.

What they did know was that they stood in a wooden cabin on the other side of a simple, hand-made desk from a woman dressed in a flowing tunic and an elegant blue sash with gold embroidery. Her ears were pointed and Her dark green hair, up in two ponytails, seemed never-ending. The only thing that compared in scale was the sense of infinite compassion in Her sparkling eyes. 

“We meet again, Goddess In My Dreams.”

“I see you are, ah, better dressed this evening,” The Goddess said with a sweet smile. 

Byleth glanced down. Oh, good. They had on proper clothes this time. Last night, they had emerged from the void in just their shorts, their glasses, and a hair tie. They supposed anyone else with the kind of body that got assigned female at birth would have been mortified by the experience of being topless around a stranger, but the only emotion they had felt at the time was mild inconvenience. Clothing was not something on their mind, either while existing in the void or at home.

What was more disconcerting was how their host had been utterly unbothered by this. Her eyes did not drift and linger like so many others’ did. She had offered a blanket without more than an understanding smile. Maybe it was because She had much the same figure beneath her flowing clothes.

“I hope that means you will stay for tea this time?” The Goddess continued. “I feel that we have much to share.”

Byleth nodded, not sure what else to say. They were still trying to grapple with the identity of this person. Despite all Byleth had been told last night, the woman seated at Her desk seemed so… ordinary. Stacks of paper surrounded Her, books lay open on top of each other, Her left hand was stained with ink, but She seemed happy about having so much work. 

Was She really a goddess from another world?

“Come, Ashen One,” The Goddess said, rising from Her wooden chair. Walking around Her desk, She moved with a grace that Byleth could not find words to describe. Bells jingled in Her hair and around Her ankles with each step. Her hair floated behind Her as She moved. Not like it was being held up by a breeze, but more like She were underwater.

Was this really a dream? It was too surreal to be anything else, but Byleth’s senses told them they were awake. The polished wood was warm against their bare feet, and the slight amount of the smoke which escaped going up the chimney burned their nose. 

“Sit and chat with me, phantom. I can feel the questions pouring out of your mind, and it would not do to have you so overwhelmed that you did not visit again.”

The Goddess offered Her hand, palm up. Her ink-stained fingers were so long and they were warm to the touch. All of a sudden, Byleth was seated at a small table under a gazebo. The room around them had changed from wooden walls to an open garden. Though it was October, the noon-time air was just the right temperature for sitting outside.

A cup of bergamot tea steamed at their elbow, and a saucer with two sugar cubes placed on it was on the table next to it. Though there was another steaming cup at the seat on the opposite side of the table from Byleth, The Goddess was not seated.

“I hope you like berry jelly,” Her voice said as She walked past Byleth with a tray of simple cookies. “These are my favorite.”

Byleth waited for her host to sit before taking a sip of their tea and was shocked at the taste. There was no way this had been brewed, the flavor was so pure. It was as if someone had taken the essential concept of bergamot as tea, distilled it into a liquid, and poured it into their cup.

“You seem pleased with the taste,” The Beginning said over the rim of Her own cup.

“I have never tasted something so divine as this tea,” Byleth said with a nod.

The Goddess laughed, Her voice as clear as the blue sky overhead. “I am glad to hear that.”

Enjoying their tea, the pair both sat for a spell. Wherever and whenever they were, it was not the modern New York Byleth knew. The air didn’t sting. The only sounds were birds tweeting. The sky wasn’t impaled on the Manhattan skyline. Whatever this was—dream, out of body experience, hallucination—chatting about where The Goddess had come from was the most pleasant bit of time Byleth had ever experienced.

After a little while, the conversation came to a rest. Byleth had, for the most part, simply listened to The Goddess talk about herself and about Fódlan, but something was bothering them.

“Why…?” Byleth began, before laughing at themselves. They never spoke first, but The Goddess made them feel comfortable in a way not even Jeralt could. Was it an effect of being around someone with such an empathetic presence? “Why is it that someone of your significance is doting on me like this?”

“You feel familiar to me,” The Goddess said, Her expression becoming pensive as She put Her cup down—it had refilled itself at some point. She traced circles in the tablecloth with Her finger not stained with ink. “Like an older sibling returning home for the first time or…” Her hand stopped moving and the slight distress on Her face turned into a scowl. “How strange it is for me of all people to have trouble with words.” 

Unsure what to say, Byleth sipped their tea and observed their host. In this single moment of emotional eclipse, it was harder than ever to think the woman sitting there was anything but another human. The longer they looked, the more Byleth seemed to recognize Her. Just as they were about to voice their observations, however, The Goddess laughed and the shadows over Her face vanished like nighttime before the rising sun. “My sudden linguistic deficiency aside, it has been comforting to see you and there is no end to my need for that feeling right now.”

How fascinating. “A Goddess can feel uncomfortable?”

“Sure,” She replied. “I have a responsibility to my family—and my followers. I have to be their strength. Although I fear mine alone might not be enough to stop what is coming.”

What did that mean? “Have you failed to stop this danger before?”

The Goddess lowered Her hands to her lap and looked down at them. She was still for a long moment. Finally, She inhaled. “Yes,” She said, not looking up.

Not usually one to move a conversation forward, Byleth felt compelled to ask what had happened.

“It was a great calamity that consumed the entire world. A tide of destruction I could not stop even with the aid of my sisters.”

“Sisters?”

“Ah, yes. Dagda, Banba, and Ériu.”

Had The Goddess ever mentioned her name? She had called Herself The Beginning, The Progenitor, The Spark of Fódlan, and The Life Which Had Begun All Life, but those were titles, not a name. “What is your name, then?”

“Have I not told you? My dearest apologies. My name is, as you might imagine, Fódla. My followers, however, call me Sothis.”

At that, Byleth felt the world tilt and, all of a sudden, they were falling back through the void and opened their eyes to their dingy studio apartment in Brooklyn. It seemed that their time with The Goddess was up for tonight. 

“Oh, good, you’re alive.”

“Ugh… Sothis?” Byleth groaned, rolling onto their back.

“_Finally_. I’ve been trying to wake you for, like, five minutes.” For a moment, it was The Goddess standing over her. Then the last wisp of the dream vanished as the projection of their AI brightened from night-time mode. 

The sense of recognition they had experienced while having tea crept up again. Byleth had never seen the Goddess before these couple of meetings, but there was no doubt now that the image of their AI bore an uncanny, if more child-like, resemblance. Their Sothis was much shorter, and her face was not at all as compassionate as The Goddess’ had been. Although the hair-to-body ratio seemed to be about the same.

Half-awake, mind spinning, Byleth tried to recall _ why _ they had named the new awareness Sothis in the first place. Had they heard the name before that initial version emerged from the neural network training last year? More importantly, why did a digital construct they had created share a resemblance with a being Byleth had only just met? This was more questions than they were ready to handle before their morning workout.

“Why even set an alarm if you intend on sleeping for the whole day?” Sothis asked, her tone dripping acid. The projection leaned back, making it seem like she was sitting cross-legged on Byleth’s chest.

Byleth shrugged, but said nothing else. No retort was worth the effort, although they did make sure to pass through Sothis when they got up a few seconds later. The contact caused the projected form of spunky, self-aware program to come apart for a moment as particles scattered everywhere.

“Oh, real mature,” Sothis said to their back. Byleth ignored her.

“You’re lucky I know you so well,” the digital sentience said a moment later, now floating over Byleth’s shoulder. She followed as they crossed the room of their studio apartment to the tiny bathroom opposite their futon. ”Because if I didn't...”

“I just don’t feel like explaining myself to you every single time we disagree,” Byleth said, glancing at Sothis’ reflection in the mirror as they brushed their hair out—not that it mattered, their dark hair was always sticking up in places. “It’s exhausting.”

“Then agree with me more!” Sothis retorted, stomping her foot on the empty air.

“I would," Byleth countered before splashed some water on their face."If you were right more often than not.”

Sothis dove through Byleth so that she was emerging from their chest. “When have I ever not been right about something?”

Just that alone would have been upsetting for most people, but it forced Byleth to focus on one of the few things which provoked more than a minor sense of aggravation. Despite the approach of their twenty-fifth birthday, their body had continued to add to their already overwhelming bust measurement in a steady fashion. If this kept up for another year, any attempts to bind them would be fruitless... _Meanwhile,_ it had done nothing about the scars from the many scraps they had gotten into while living overseas with Jeralt. Well, nothing to do about it, really.

Raising their arm, Byleth leaned into their half-opened fist. “Let’s see… Just yesterday morning you insisted the access issue with the office’s local servers was being caused by a bad LDAP configuration on the domain controller when it was just a simple NIC outage on that switch which had its firmware defaulted last week.”

“Okay, sure,” Sothis said in a huff, going back to floating over Byleth’s shoulder. “But that’s, like, the only time.”

“Whatever you say, Sothis. I won’t mention the time you told me, just the other day, that—”

“Alright, I get it!” She crossed her arms as she continued to bob up and down in midair. “Nobody’s perfect...”

Byleth ruffled the elf's hair as they walked past to pull on their typical gear for Saturday practice with Shamir-sensei. Sothis continued to sulk and made sure she was in Byleth’s line of sight the whole time. One after another, Byleth pulled on a binder, a sleeveless Spandex turtleneck, and their favorite tank top for Judo training. 

“I’ve been meaning to ask about that shirt,” Sothis said finally, her curiosity overcoming her need to look grumpy. “Aren’t you ever worried that ‘I’m Trans, I’m Autistic, and I’ll kick your ass’ is a bit too...”

“Truthful?”

“I was going to say inflammatory, but, sure.”

“No one takes it personally anymore,” Byleth said with a shrug as they pulled on jeans. 

“In class, sure, but what about on the street?”

Byleth gave Sothis a deadpan look. “Do you really think the randoms on the street who look at me bother to read my shirt?”

Sothis’ gaze flicked down and a little frown appeared on her face. “No, I suppose not.”

“Exactly.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Next time: Edelgard and Dorothea meet up with Lysithea for breakfast and briefings.


	6. Oh, so that's what a crush feels like.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After a momentus weekend, everyone takes a breather and reflects.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, uh, fair warning but this is like four or five chapters later in the fic from A Selfish Morning. I had been trying to get this out for Edelyth week's "Crush" prompt--and I think I just missed the window. 
> 
> Anyway, it should stand alone enough to read as is. Going to endeavor to fill in the blanks ASAP, just started on Ch.3

To say Byleth was overwhelmed would be underselling how many thoughts had been racing through their mind. This weekend had been out of control, and the only thing more so was their hair this morning. A month's worth of experience had been crammed into the last two days.

They had somehow traveled back in time to meet a forgotten goddess. 

They had found out a glowing sword would appear if they willed it. 

They had even learned that they could transform into something…  _ inhuman _ if backed into a no-win situation. 

Beyond all of those, however, was discovering the secret to falling for someone. Yes, after years of never being attracted to anyone, it turned out all they had needed to find that spark was survive multiple life-and-death situations with someone—and not just any life-and-death situation either! These situations would have killed someone who could not transform into something else like they, apparently, could. 

Like Edelgard could.

It was no exaggeration to say that the weekend had tried to kill them,  _ twice _ . Being back at the office this morning had, for once, been a nice change of pace. Even so, their emotions were a completely new kind of wreck as they found themselves thinking about Edelgard, and what the two of them had fought only a few hours ago. 

Not that they had anything to go on, combat with monsters was a new experience, but the battle had been difficult. It had only ended because they held that…  _ thing _ down with their transmogrified arms so that Edelgard could deliver the final blow. 

So, yeah, completing the backups of a few servers ahead of their cloud migration felt like a quick ‘Hello World' by comparison. Sure, it was terabytes of information that could not be replaced, but at least Byleth had control over how things went. They could anticipate issues. They could enact a plan. Things that the weekend had been lacking.

Sothis' voice cut in over the music coming out of Byleth's headphones, her runtime taking priority over their playlist. "I bet I can guess what you're thinking right now, and you're right. It is... entertaining how much of your life has been coincidences lately.” 

Byleth put their fingers to the side of their headphones over their ear like the touch was necessary to talk back. "Can you elaborate?”

"Can I elaborate?! Are you really that thick?!”

"Just... answer the question, Sothis.” 

"Tch. Well, like this morning for instance. Who seriously would have thought the three of you would all happen to work for the same company? In the same building, no less! And yet…” Byleth could almost see Sothis' hologram pacing, hand to chin, as her mass of green hair bobbed back and forth with each step. "And yet, Saturday was the first time you had spoken to them.”

"Consider then the utter happenstance that you were passing by when those three were attacked on Saturday. That cafe was nowhere near your normal route back from Judo practice.” the elfen A.I. observed.

"You were the one who suggested we get off at an earlier station,” Byleth pointed out. "You'd mentioned something about track maintenance.” 

"Okay, so maybe that  _ was _ just a coincidence.” From the shift in her tone, the mental visual of Sothis pacing switched to one of her seated in midair, her childish face pensive. She was likely drawing circles in the air in front of her as she pondered her next statement. 

In the quiet, Byleth turned their attention back to their work.

"That's weird,” Sothis said after a moment. "I just checked, there's no mention of work on that track in the last week. I wonder why I told you that... Most troubling.”

"It happens.”

"Anyway, what about last night? You cannot tell me you weren't surprised to see your new friend on the train—and that was before the attack. Once another one of those creatures showed up, it was like Saturday morning all over again.”

That was sort of true. This time, however, the glowing sword which had cut through one of the monsters had been ineffective. Their first strike had bounced off and then the sword was sent flying. It was only when Edelgard went down that they had been aware of their body reshaping in response to their desire to keep her safe. 

Sothis continued. "If you ask me, which you did, something seems…  _ fishy _ .”

"Fishy?”

"Of all the—Let me spell it out for you since you cannot seem to come to your own conclusions. Considering what happened with the glitch in my information, it's as if someone is orchestrating events around you. Someone has a plan for you and it might not be in your best interest.”

As was the case recently, Sothis' observations were as sharp and hard to argue with as a meat cleaver. Now that she had been active for the better part of a year without any downtime, this revision of her consciousness had surpassed her predecessors' previous plateaus in a big way. Although, with that came the ever-growing level of snark she was absorbing from the ‘net. Still, her development was impressive. How much smarter would she get in the coming months? 

Someone knocked on the metal doorway leading between the I.T. support office and the B1 hallway. The sound was tentative as if the one knocking was unsure if they were in the right place. There was no immediate follow up 'how can I help?' in response, probably because Lin and Caspar were still at lunch. Them being gone was the reason Byleth had one side of their headphones slid behind their ear in the first place. 

It seemed, then, that saving the day, likely for some suit, fell to them. What would it be this time? Hopefully a challenge.

"Oh please,” Sothis snarked. "Just admit you like working here already. The suffering genius routine is getting old.”

Says the one created by that suffering genius.

Looking up from the backups they were overseeing, Byleth tried to peer over their monitors without being noticed. Someone was waiting in the reception room. Someone with long auburn hair and the fashion sense of a person who spent at least a portion of their day taking pictures of themselves to post on ‘gram.

What was Edelgard's girlfriend doing here? Was Edelgard with her?

Everything about Dorothea's appearance screamed carefully selected. The neutral russet color of the hoodie tied around their waist contrasted perfectly with the blue-black hue of their skirt. At the same time, it brought warmth to the light tan of their top by pulling out the subtle red accents in the stitching and along the collar. Overall, it pulled the outfit together, diminishing the impact of it being a casual piece of clothing over a tunic and pencil skirt of Spandex-laced stretch cotton.

"Oh, my,” Sothis whispered again. Her runtime now likely hacked into more than one camera. "Getting a good look at her, she's  _ gorgeous _ .”

Great. That was just what this encounter needed. Byleth's usually calm pulse was already starting to quicken at the idea of seeing Edelgard for the third day in a row and their feisty A.I. was raring to flirt with some relative stranger. The situation already promised to be stressful enough without a third voice in the conversation, so Byleth put their headphones down on their desk—much to Sothis' voiced consternation—and walked out of the back room where they worked to the reception area. 

"Oh, good. I was worried I had missed you.”

Dorothea was leaning on the waist-high help desk, with both of her elbows on the counter as she cradled her beaming face. The position of her arms combined with a silver locket ensured Byleth's eyes were drawn into the cleavage revealed by the straight collar of her top. From there, it was hard to miss that her elbows were not the only things resting on the counter. 

They had to be as big as her head! Did that mean Dorothea's unbelievable size had not been an aspect of her transformation?

Setting their shock aside, it was obvious that Dorothea loved showing off her figure. So it was not a stretch to conclude that she liked her body. There was no doubt that she probably hated several things about herself, however, what was it like being someone who celebrated and embraced their body each morning instead of fighting with it? 

Just the concept of someone enjoying being that well endowed was… fascinating to Byleth. They were not a fan of having breasts—and them being above average only provided more aggravation. They got in the way, opponents declined to spar because of them, they convinced everyone to use ‘she' and ‘her' without even asking. Binders helped with most of that, but maybe getting to know Edelgard's girlfriend would help in its own way. 

"So, uh, you wanna get lunch or something?" Dorothea asked after a moment of silence. It was phrased as a suggestion but Byleth was sure that she would not leave until their answer was yes. Outside of their brief encounter Saturday, Byleth knew very little about the bright, enthusiastic woman who was most definitely flirting with them right now. Still, they could already tell persistence was one of Dorothea's defining traits.

On Friday, being in this inescapable position would have been irritating more than anything else. Now though, Byleth's mind raced and their stomach flipped as the heat rose in their neck and face. What was the right thing to say here? 

Would it be rude to ask if Edelgard was just around the corner waiting for them?

"C'mon, Scottie," Dorothea said, putting her hands out. "My bet is that you've not left this room since you got here this morning. Right?"

Byleth went to protest, to say they were fine, but their stomach betrayed them. The gurgle was so loud that it echoed back from the hallway. When had they last eaten? Wow, that was the time? Where had the day gone?

"Sure, just let me--"

"Nope!" Dorothea said, already pulling on her hoodie.

"Nope?"

"You heard me,” she said, hands on the zipper and hem. "You were going to ask me to let you finish what you're working on and then another hour would go by." 

"Edie's the same way, y'know,” she added after zipping up. Somehow, all of her had fit. "I have to be firm with her like this, too, or she never gets up from work." 

The revelation made Byleth shiver for some reason. They shared another trait with Edelgard? Just how similar were they?

"Anyway, if I have to climb over this counter and drag you out of here by the collar, I will," she concluded, her eyes flashing the lightning that heeded her. Byleth hurried to lock their computer and pick up their things. Somehow, Sothis had sent them twenty-six texts, all of which wished them good luck. 

Why was everyone so insufferable?

* * *

_ Earlier… _

Edelgard saw the message notification in the corner of her screen but ignored it. She was so close to getting this last bug in her scripting fixed and could not afford to split her focus. The framework she had inherited was such a mess of spaghetti and chewed gun that just one moment of her eyes not being trained on this maze of dot-chained Javascript would mean having to start over.

Yes, that was most definitely the reason she was trying to keep her mind tethered to something concrete. It had nothing to do with the mysterious stranger she had met this weekend. The sword-wielding enigma with wild hair and serene eyes, whose expression was even more stoic than her own. The question mark with a name. 

_ Byleth. _

Twice, now, they had been there to confront her uncle's attempts on her life with his infernal living weapons. Twice, now, they had made her feel like her life had been incomplete until that moment—but why? She was not some lovestruck, wide-eyed heroine in a romance. She was a warrior—no, not even that. She was a weapon and weapons didn't have desires.

Even so, it was worth revisiting their encounters—the last one in particular. Edelgard was still not sure what  _ exactly _ had happened or if she wanted to see it again to draw a better conclusion. 

At the time, she had been knocked down, and her axe, Aymr, had been out of reach. Byleth had also been disarmed in the scuffle, but that did not stop them from putting themselves between her and the dog-like bio-weapon that had dragged her off the subway platform. 

The creature had lept to strike and Byleth had caught the blow with both hands. Then, their body had changed into something that was... beyond words. The ensuing scrap had given Edelgard time to get to her feet. By then, Byleth had pinned the monster down and Edelgard took the opening to take its head. 

When it was over, the way their features reemerged from behind the solid white mask emblazoned with The Crest of Flames had wedged the shape and contours of Byleth's face in her memory. They'd had such fascinating ears, too. Maybe, next time, she could pet them. 

Actually, what the hell was she thinking?

Edelgard caught a nail between her teeth, any attempt at not considering Byleth now lost. Why  _ did _ they have the ability to shapeshift anyway? According to the notes she had stolen from her uncle, only The Immaculate One and her kin could change their shape, but their appearance was reptilian, draconic even. So what  _ was _ Byleth then, with their fur, horns, and wolf-like ears? Something created? And by who? Were they a weapon just like her?

Edelgard would have likely kept on thinking, but a quick ‘Hey, you' was the only warning she got before Thea's weight was against her back. The warmth of would-be girlfriend's body leached through the turtleneck sweater she had pulled on that morning and it was only matched by the heat rising in her face. Sure, they had slept together, but it was still… unnerving to be so casually and physically intimate with someone—especially in public.

Her body tensed from the ingrained stress response. The tingle in her chest that presaged The Crest of Flames activating washed out towards her extremities. Her sleeves were already hardening into her crimson gauntlets and steel scales were creeping over the back of her hands as her armor began to form. The Immaculate One was here— _ in the building! _ Was Thea  _ trying _ to break their cover?

Then, in an unexpected move, Thea leaned close and whispered Edelgard's name into her ear. The energy from the reflexive activation of her transformational magic dissipated like steam rising off a spiced cider in the autumn air. Suddenly winded, she relaxed back into the cushion of her roommate's considerable bust. 

How could a single word disarm her so effectively? How could just someone saying her name like that melt through a lifetime of defensive training? The same thoughts had plagued her since Saturday. What she had done with Thea was so… so… so completely out of character, she could scarcely believe that she had been in control of what had transpired. She had never wanted se—a physical connection like that before but now, just the thought of Thea's lips against hers was enough to steal her breath. 

Despite it being fragmented, perhaps something about the power of the creststone Thea now carried was amplifying some innate talent in her bloodline. It was possible. A baseline human had never—

"It feels like you need a break,” Dorothea said, her fingers sinking into Edie's shoulder muscles. "You're so tense.”

The sensation scattered all of Edelgard's thoughts about theoretics like leaves in a storm. Was this the way normal people felt when they were in love? Would she ever get over this?

Edelgard looked up into Thea's eyes and let a slight smile quirk one side of her mouth. "Not yet, I  _ need  _ to get this done.”

"Then I can wait—Oh, don't give me that look. Saviors of the world need to eat, too.”

"You're right, I suppose,” Edelgard said with a practiced sigh. "Before that though...”

Edelgard spun her chair around and Thea stepped back to lean against the short filing cabinet that shared the cubicle. The shadow on her bare thighs from her pencil skirt being pulled tight tugged at Edelgard's attention but she shook it off, her hands turning to fists in her lap.

Weapons didn't have desires.

"Do you remember that stranger who stepped into the fight Saturday?”

"Yeah, she was amazing.”

" _ They _ , actually,” Edelgard said absently. "We spoke more last night.”

"Oh? Did my Edie go on a date with a mysterious magical swordfighter?” Dorothea gushed.

"Wha—Why would you think that?” Edelgard stammered, her face and neck getting hot. Had it been a date? Did fighting for your lives in the subway count as romantic when you were both weapons? "Honestly Thea, we've been friends for a year and it's only in the last month or so that I have felt comfortable around you. What makes you think I would just jump on another partner right after, um...”

"Okay, okay. Either way, I'm happy you're making friends.”

"Oh, please,” Edelgard said with a scowl. "You sound like a mother.”

Thea shrugged and let out an airy laugh. 

Edelgard heaved a sigh and tugged her stoicism back into place. "At any rate, I wanted to know what you thought of them. You are an impeccable judge of character, so I want to know what you think.”

”I think they're perfect for you.”

So much for the stoicism. "Thea, seriously, I want your advice.”

Dorothea put a finger to her chin as she looked up at the ceiling. "Well, if their appearance rate is any indication, they seem super reliable. The two of you fought like you had trained together for years. I think having someone like that around would be good for you. I can't always be watching your back—much as I want to,” she added, her gaze drifting back down to match Edie's.

Edelgard straightened in her chair. "Tell me something. Until we fought those noise Friday night, did it ever occur to you that I could be attacked, much less on a daily basis?”

"No,” Thea said after a moment's hesitation. "No, I suppose not.”

"So why do you care—?”

"Because I know now,” Dorothea replied, anticipating the question. She leaned down to put her hands over Edie's. "You don't have to carry your burden alone anymore, Edie. You don't have to be alone because I'm with you now.”

"I've never been alone, though,” Edelgard murmured. "I've always had Lyssa.”

"You know what I mean,” Thea replied. "Lyssa and you exist in the same context. There is nothing else  _ but _ this for the two of you. Me though, I—”

Edelgard shook her off, suddenly annoyed. "Just because you're an outsider doesn't mean that you can disregard—”

"Will you just listen!” Dorothea hissed, gripping the chair's arms and forcing Edie to face her. "You have both shared this burden your whole lives. I'm not diminishing that struggle. What I mean is that now you both have someone else to help. I'm here for you—and I'd imagine someone else could be persuaded to feel the same way...”

Edelgard's gaze slid to the left, her annoyance melting as Byleth's face flashed in her mind's eye. "I don't know what you're talking about. Not in the slightest.”

Thea leaned closer. "Oh, I think you do. Sh-They work here, by the way. Down in tech support. I saw them this morning.”

"Byleth does?”

"Yup. In fact, I'm about to go ask them out to lunch—and  _ you're _ coming with me.”

Edelgard's mind slid back a few hours, to the feeling of safety while being brought back to a station from the depths of the subway. Byleth had carried her, cradled in her arms, like it was nothing. For that brief moment, the weights of responsibility and expectation around her ankles, her wrists, and her neck had vanished. In Byleth's arms, Edelgard had felt…  _ free. _

That, however, was not an option for her. Weapons didn't have desires, she told herself, only purposes. Weapons didn't have desires—but this one was developing them all the same. Having feelings for Thea was bad enough, but at least Edelgard could trust her. Getting involved with someone she had only just met? Who had powers like the ones Rhea kept concealed? Impossible. Beyond impossible. So impossible that it made her feel like she was drowning in despair over how difficult it would be. Toppling a multi-national company lead by a dragon from another world seemed like an easier goal in comparison.

"You know, I just remembered I have a meeting. So I will have to decline.”

Thea didn't move, but flashes of light traveled through her hair like storm clouds on the horizon. "I won't make you come down,” she said with all the calm of that impending storm. "But either you promise to meet us there, or I'll bring her up here to collect you.”

Edelgard tensed again, her will pushing against Thea's. Thea did not push back but merely held her ground. Even so, it felt like trying to shove a wall. Despite herself, Edelgard felt a pulse of what might have been arousal at being evenly matched with someone. This woman was going to be the death of her. 

"Fine,” Edelgard said finally. "See you in a bit.”

* * *

_ Now... _

Dorothea's destination turned out to be  _ Judith's _ , a sandwich place a couple of blocks over from the office. 

"They have the best homemade Rye,” she explained, pushing the door open.

Although most people had taken lunch an hour ago it was packed and the takeout line was even more chaotic than the subway ticket counter during rush hour. Behind the raised glass walls, a woman with dark hair and an olive complexion was taking orders. Her pen moved like a blur and she kept handing the tickets to her staff with the unwavering confidence of an accomplished field general. Down the line, three people worked in tandem to put sandwiches together and a fourth was handling people's payments.

Dorothea hooked her arm around Byleth's elbow. "C'mon, let's grab a table.”

A table? Why? Weren't they just going to get something and go? 

Nonetheless, Byleth was pulled through the crowd with more grace than they anticipated. Even with someone in tow, Dorothea moved through the gaps in the mass of people with practiced ease. All of a sudden, Byleth was seated in a booth towards the back of the room so that they could see the door. 

Had Dorothea done so to ensure they would see Edelgard's entrance? Actually,  _ was _ Edelgard even joining them? There had not been time to ask.

"So, Byleth,” Dorothea said, her voice almost a purr. "Tell me about yourself. How does one end up working at the help desk of a massive corporation like Seiros.com?”

What was there to say, really? "It was an opportunity. I helped someone with their phone one day a few years back, and they offered me a job.”

Dorothea looked incredulous. It was the kind of expression someone might have used had you told them you had totally missed out on a thing everyone else liked. "You landed a support job…?”

"Yeah.”

"... at the New York branch of the largest tech firm in the world?”

"Yeah.” 

"... because you helped someone with their phone?”

"Yeah, here,” Byleth pulled out their phone and flipped to a photo of them and Rhea at an event during the holidays last year. "This is who I helped.”

In light of her exaggerated reaction before, Dorothea's lack of one this time was hard to read. She did not have a quip. She did not complement Rhea's sharp suit or her carefully styled hair. She simply bit the finger as her brow furrowed. It was…  _ cute _ .

"You, uh, you know who this is right?”

"Sure. She's Rhea. We talk when she's in town and—”

"Can I...?” Dorothea asked, picking up Byleth's phone.

Byleth gestured by all means, and, a moment later, Dorothea put the phone back on the table. A photo of Rhea was next to a huge block of text that ultimately boiled down to her being CEO and founder of Seiros.com.

"I had no idea.”

"Were it anyone else, I would think you were making fun of me, but I get the feeling you're being serious.”

Why would anyone joke about this?

"Well, this conversation sure ended up on the rocks, didn't it? Start over?”

"Sure.”

"Good, then, let me say, first off, thanks for your help Saturday. I don't know what we would have done had you not shown up when you did.”

"Just passing by,” Byleth said with ever so slight a grin as they recalled Sothis' analysis.

"Still—and from what I gather, you and Edie had another encounter last night, right?”

Byleth nodded. Where was Dorothea going with this? Was there even a point? She was typing on her phone at the same time, her gaze flitting back and forth between screen and looking up. Sure that they could ignore the conversation for a moment, Byleth spaced out watching people coming and going through the front door.

After a few people, they went to turn their attention back to whatever it was that Dorothea was trying to explain when someone in a red turtleneck who had long silvery hair walked through the door. From what they could see, red tights and a conservative black skirt rounded out their outfit. Aside from their face, every inch of this person's skin was covered up. They even had black leather gloves pulled over their hands and forearms. Was it—? 

Edelgard?

Apparently, they had said that out loud because Dorothea responded. "Oh, is she here then?” She rose and turned to wave. "Back here, Edie.”

Like the moment was something from a movie, the crowd parted. Edelgard's attention remained forward instead of worrying about dodging around people. Her purple-eyed gaze never wandered as she marched to their table and sat down. She didn't sit next to Dorothea either, instead choosing to drop to the bench next to Byleth.

"I hate having my back to the door,” she said as if that explained it. However, she was stiff like someone waiting for a jump scare. "You're looking more human again, I see.”

"Am I? I hadn't noticed.” What was this? Banter? They never did banter.

The quip seemed to have an effect on Edelgard as a faint amount of pink rose in her cheeks. "I didn't get to thank you properly for last night's encounter,” she said, obviously meaning to launch into something sweeping.

Byleth decided to channel Sothis and put her hand on Edelgard's. The leather was soft to the touch. "The best thanks you could give me would be for today to not involve another life or death struggle.”

"I cannot make promises,” Edelgard replied, "but hopefully that is the case.”

At some point, Dorothea must have gotten up because she returned with drinks and chips. "Lunch is on me, you two.”

"Thea, I can—”

"Nope,” she said with that same commanding tone. "You paid last time. Besides, I set this up so the least I can do is make sure things continue to go smoothly.”

What was this now? Had they planned something? No, Edelgard was just as surprised. So there was something else going on here. 

Byleth turned to Edelgard. "Are you going to ask me to go out with you?”

Regardless of her answer, Edelgard's face went from a little pink to glowing.

"What?” Byleth asked, glancing at Dorothea. She seemed as pleased as punch at the moment. "Is that not why you would set this up? You all want me to join the fight, right?”

"Oh—” Edelgard managed to say around nervous laughter. "Was that… was that what you meant?”

Was there another meaning to—Oh. Starting to blush themselves, Byleth could almost see and hear Sothis as she rolled on the floor laughing.

Dorothea managed to find words first. "Actually, yeah, that's exactly it.”

Edelgard tried to say something, but Dorothea kept talking. "We're going out tonight and Edie wanted to know if you would be willing to join us?”

"Sure.” What was the worst that could happen, right?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Next Time: Byleth endeavors to be normal around Edelgard and Dorothea as they have a girl's night out


End file.
